Shoe sewing machines



May 30, 1967 E. QwNN 3,322,082

SHOE SEWING MACHINES Filed March 25. 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet l In venfor I Edward Quinn By hzls'Ahqr-ney y 0, 6 E. QUINN 3,322,082

SHOE SEWING MACHINES Filed March 25, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 May 30, 1967 QUINN 3,322,082

SHOE SEWING MACHINES Filed March 25, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 United States Patent 3,322,082 SHOE SEWING MACIHNES EdwardQuinn, Peabody, Mass., assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Boston, Mass., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Mar. 25, 1963, Ser. No. 267,608 Claims. (Cl. 112-38) The present invention relates to improvements in shoe sewing machines, more especially of the type for tensioning an upper in a fiat-lasted shoe while the shoe is supported on a last to assist in holding the parts together with secure permanent fastenings and otherwise to ornament the shoe.

It has long been recognized that one of the advantages in the manufacture of a Goodyear welt shoe results from progressively increasing the tension in the upper produced while stretching the upper over a last and from the use of a properly tightened inseam for securing the welt, the upper and an insole together after the upper has been lasted. Further than this, the insertion of a properly formed inseam has been found also to increase the tension imparted to the upper during the lasting operation. However, no one has heretofore attempted to draw a flat lasted shoe upper into accurate conformity with its supporting last in a manner corresponding to that employed with a Goodyear welt shoe, so that the benefits of a Goodyear welt construction have seldom been achieved by flat lasted or other similarly manufactured shoes.

The objects of the present invention are generally to provide a machine for manufacturing an improved flat lasted shoe formed with an ornamental upper tensioning seam and to enable the upper to be secured to a shoe bottom member while supported on a last, in such a way that the tension in the upper produced in lasting actually is increased in a manner comparable to the increased tension obtained with a Goodyear welt inseam.

Further objects of the invention are to provide a machine for inserting an ornamental, as well as functional, seam in an improved flat lasted shoe while retaining the advantages of simplicity and ease in manufacture of the flat-lasted shoe, the shoe derived from the use of the machine being conformed more closely with the last, on

which it is originally assembled than by previous flat lasted shoe procedures.

To the ends noted the machine of the present invention is arranged for operation upon a flat lasted shoe upper while the marginal portions of the upper are temporarily secured to the insole on the last and the machine is provided with the usual stitch forming and work feeding devices including a work penetrating needle, a work support of substantial length along the line of work feed and of a width transversely to the line of feed at least half that of the tread surface of the shoe at its narrowest point, the work support acting to support the shoe in opposition to the thrust of the needle, in which machine there is a gage disposed at an angle to the work supporting surface of the work support for pressing the last supported upper at the side of the shoe into line with the path of the needle while leaving an area of the upper Within the needle path otherwise free, so that a bulging rib is formed in the upper between the lines of the inseam appearing at the side of the upper and along the overlasted margin of the upper on the tread surface of the shoe.

Preferably, the shoe is constructed with a bottom memher, through which the stitches of the inseam also pass and the machine is provided with a presser foot, between which and the work support the extension of the bottom member is clamped during formation of each stitch. In

one form of this feature the bottom member is a flat welt and a guide is provided for directing the welt into the inseam beneath the break line of the lasted upper. The shoe is then finished in a conventional manner by attaching an outsole either by cement or by a separate outseam, as in a Goodyear welt shoe.

In a preferred method of making the shoe an upper is prepared by flat lasting it over an insole with temporary fastenings and the ornamental upper tensioning inseam is inserted with its individual fastenings passing through the overlasted upper on the insole without intersecting the insole, thus producing the bulging rib along the side of the upper with a height proportional to the desired tightening action of the inseam. When an outsole is attached the excess material in the upper taken up by the inseam is pressed flat by the outsole against the tread surface of the insole to accentuate at the side of the upper the bulging rib formed by the seam. The shoe resulting from the novel inseam has the side and the overlasted margin of the upper maintained in proper angular relation, so that when the outsole also is attached by an outseam or otherwise to the tread surface of the shoe a secure and permanent fastening is insured.

These and other features of the invention, as hereinafter described and claimed, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed specification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view looking from the right front of portions of a sewing machine head embodying the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a left side detail view on an enlarged scale of a portion of a presser foot in the machine of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a right side sectional view of certain of the stitch forming devices in the machine of FIG. 1 indicat ing the manner of operation on a shoe formed with a Welt as a bottom member included in a seam inserted by the machine;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a completed shoe with an outsole attached capable of being sewn by the machine illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional detail view of parts of the machine shown in operating relationship with a shoe having an outsole as a bottom member;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a completed shoe which has been processed by the machine of the invention;

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view of an elementary form of shoe capable of being processed by the machine;

FIG. 8 is a similar sectional view of the same shoe after being sewn by the machine;

FIG. 9 is a front detail view on an enlarged scale of a work support, presser foot and seam gage employed in the machine of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view taken along the line XX of FIG. 9; and

FIG. 11 is a detail view of a welt guide employed in the machine.

The present invention is illustrated in connection with a lock stitch shoe outsole sewing machine similar to that disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 1,169,909, granted Feb. 1, 1916, upon application of Fred Ashworth and No. 2,334,299, granted Nov. 16, 1943, upon application of Carl F. Whitaker. Besides the conventional lock stitch forming devices of the Ashworth machine the present machine is equipped with a Work support of relatively large area, as in the Whitaker machine.

In the machine of the Whitaker patent the work support is intended to underlie a separate outsole before attachment to a shoe in order to apply a welt by means of an ornamental seam extending around the margin of the outsole. For this reason the work support is inclined downwardly and rearwardly of the machine in order to insert the stitches in the proper angular relationship to the edge of the outsole, separate from the shoe.

The present machine is not intended to operate upon an outsole separate from the shoe but, instead a shoe is provided having its parts, including an insole 4 and a fiat-lasted upper 6, temporarily connected together, while still supported on a last 8, on which they are assembled. The work support of the present machine, therefore, is inclined downwardly and forwardly of the machine, instead of downwardly and rearwardly, and the shoe is presented to the machine with its bottom or tread surface inclined similarly, so that an exposed inseam of individual stitches may be inserted along the break line of both the last and the upper formed on the last.

The stitch forming devices of the machine comprise a curved hook, work penetrating needle 12, a curved work feeding awl 14, a thread finger 16, a needle looper 18, a shuttle and a thread tensioning and stitch setting take-up 21.

To support a rounded bottom of a lasted shoe the work support has a work engaging surface composed of two parts including a sliding wedge 22 and a guideway plate 24 therefor, fixed to a U-shaped bracket 26 formed with arcuate arms carried by the frame, indicated at 28, of the sewing machine. The arcuate arms of the bracket 26 form slides movable within correspondingly shaped guideways 30 (see FIG. 3) on the frame 28, the center of curvature of the guideways intersecting a needle receiving slot 31 (FIGS. 1 and 9) in the guideway plate 24. To secure the bracket in adjusted position on the machine frame 28 the guideway plate has arcuate slots, one of which is indicated at 32, to receive a pair of clamp screws 34 (see also FIG. 10) passing through the slots and into threaded engagement with the arcuate arms of the bracket 26. The arrangement is such that when the screws 34 are loosened the angular position of the work engaging surface of the Work support may be changed about the needle slot 31, as a center, to suit the requirements of the shoe being operated upon.

The work engaging surface of the work support is of a substantial length along the line of work feed as compared to the usual work support or table of a shoe outseam sewing machine, such as disclosed in Patent No. 1,169,909, which forms the basic machine of the present invention. The work support also is of a width transversely to the line of feed at least half that on the tread surface of the shoe at its narrowest point, which obviously is at the shank of the shoe. Because the shank of a shoe always has a transverse curvature it will be supported at sufliciently widely separated positions on the sliding wedge 22 and guideway plate 24 to insure maintaining the shoe in stable position when pressed downwardly against the wedge and plate.

To enable insertion of the exposed upper tensioning inseam, which will be of uniform and pleasing appearance according to the invention, the shoe is presented to the machine at a location where the path indicated by the line 36 of FIG. 10 taken by the needle and awl intersects the upper along its break line without penetrating the insole 4, the fastening of the upper during lasting being provided either by cement or by staples 37, as shown in FIG. 7. When the shoe is so located, the stitches 10 (FIG. 8) inserted by the machine pass through the overlasted upper on the insole without intersecting the insole and take up any looseness existing in the upper on the last, leaving the upper between the lines of the inseam appearing at the side of the upper and along its overlasted margin free to produce an ornamental bulging rib 38 which absorbs any looseness in the upper on the last. When a bottom member is attached to the shoe the rib is confined between the lines of the inseam on the upper and of the bottom member.

For guiding the shoe while inserting the inseam a gage 39 is provided and disposed at an angle of approximately to the work supporting surface of the work support for pressure against the bulging last supported side of the upper in line with the path of the needle and awl. For this purpose the gage 39 has a needle and awl opening 40 (FIG. 9) formed in it, so that the needle and awl pass freely through both the opening 31 in the work support and the opening 40 of the gage. The shoe after sewing may be completed with the attachment of a bottom member, either by cement or by further stitching or a bottom member may be attached to the tread surface of the shoe by the stitches 16.

The gage 39 is located to leave an area of the upper within the needle and awl paths uncompressed to accentuate the bulge in the rib on the upper between the line of the inseam on the upper and the tread surface of the shoe and to close up the crease between the upper and outsole. Accordingly, the gage is fixedly secured to the machine frame and is mounted for easy adjustment to enable the width of the bulging rib to be changed in accordance with the work requirements.

As a convenient adjustable means for mounting the inseam gage 39 the frame of the machine has a portion 41 projecting over the work support. The frame portion 41 has secured to it a raceway 42, in which the shuttle 20 is mounted for rotation. On the right side of the frame portion 41 is mounted an angle plate 43 formed with a guideway 44 (see FIG. 10) extending tangentially to the arc of needle curvature. By this construction the opening 40 of the gage can be maintained during adjustment, accurately in line with the needle and awl path. For adjustably securing the gage 39 in the guide way the gage supporting plate has a slot 45 (FIG. 3) through which passes a clamping screw 46 extending into threaded engagement with the inseam gage 39. To accommodate large adjustments of the inseam gage the plate 43 is not mounted directly on the machine frame portion 41 but is secured to a separate slotted block 47, within the slot of which is located a fastening, comprising a screw 48 threaded into the plate 43. The block 47 is in turn made fast to the frame portion 41 by a pair of screws 49 (FIG. 3) passing through openings in the block 47.

Whether the shoe sewn on the machine is to be provided with a bottom member comprising a welt 50, as in FIGS. 3, 4 and 8, or a final outsole 51 (see FIGS. 5 and 10) at the time the inseam is inserted, additional means is provided for guiding the shoe and for preventing its displacement during formation of stitches. As illustrated, the additional guiding means comprises a presser foot 52 acting inside the path of the needle to clamp an extension of the bottom member against the work support. Thus, the presser foot is disposed to act between the work support and the inseam gage 39. Where an outsole is already temporarily attached to the tread surface of the shoe the inseam may be guided by a projection 520 on the presser foot, the projection acting on the edge of the outsole.

In order to assist in the use of a flat welt directed into the inseam, a guide 53, shown in FIGS. 1, 9 and 11 is secured to the underside of'the plate 24. The welt guide is in the form of a metal stripbent to provide an opening for the welt 50 with a tab extending beneath the guideway plate 24, through which passes a screw 54 threadedinto the guideway plate. The use of the welt guide, as illustrated in FIG. 11, admits inclusion of the welt in a single inseam inserted within the upper.

Where the bottom of a shoe has a large amount of curvature, particularly along the shank of the shoe it may be desirable to raise or lower the position of the shoe during insertion of an inseam in order to maintain the line of the inseam uniformly spaced from the shoe bottom member or to change the width of the rib 38. To these ends the angular position of the shoe may be adjusted by movement of the sliding wedge 22 on the guideway plate 24. The forward end of the sliding wedge is provided with downwardly extending projections in which are secured the ends of a pin 55 movable loosely within a slot in the upper end of an arm 56 secured at its lower end to a shaft 57, mounted for rotation in a lug 58 projecting from the frame of the machine. Also secured to the shaft 57 is a block 60 having a downwardly extending pin 62 loosely restrained between a pair of fingers 64 and 66 adjustably secured to an arm 68 (FIG. 1) fastened to the upper end of a vertical spindle 70. The spindle 70 is rotatable in a bearing 71 formed on a part of the machine frame and the spindle is rotated by means of an arm 72 secured to its lower end and provided with a handle 74. During sewing operations movement of the arm 68 causes the shaft 57 to rotate and the sliding wedge 22 to move forwardly and rearwardly along the guideway plate 24, thus effecting a change in the angle of the shoe while engaging the work support.

The advantages of constructing a shoe by use of the machine disclosed not only comprise improving the tightness of the upper on the last to insure an accurate conformity of the upper but also, affording a less expensive shoe construction for flat lasted work, wherein a relatively thin insole is mounted on a last, the marginal portions of the upper being temporarily secured in flattened condition on the insole and an upper tightening inseam being inserted along the break line of the last in the upper Without penetrating the insole. With or without the use of a bottom member in the form of either a welt or an outsole, the appearance of the shoe, as illustrated in FIG. 6, is enhanced by the bulging rib of the upper, the rib acting also to close up the crease between the upper and the bottom member of the shoe. Thus, the entry of abrasive or other destructive material into the crease of the shoe is substantially reduced from that found in the usual shoe construction, where the upper is drawn snugly about the break line of the last.

To improve the appearance of a shoe constructed in accordance with the invention and to accentuate the rib formed in the upper it is caused to bulge uniformly throughout its length. For this purpose it may be desirable in certain instances to cement or otherwise secure to the marginal portion of the insole of a shoe a stiff fiber strip, such as that shown in 76 in FIGS. 3 and 4, the outer edge of the strip projecting slightly beyond the edge of the insole. The upper is then lasted with its margin secured to the strip. When the lasted shoe is presented to the machine, as illustrated in FIG. 3, an inseam is inserted penetrating the strip 76 and the bottom member comprising the Welt 50 or the outsole 51 as the case may be. During the insertion of the stitches by the machine, the outer edge of the strip 76 then fills up the bulging rib in the upper formed by the inseam.

In sewing the bottom member to the shoe the presser foot clamps the extension of the bottom member to assist in feeding and supporting the work in operating position. After the shoe has been sewn the extension of the bottom member, illustrated by dot-dash lines 78 in FIG. 4, may be trimmed off if desired or other variations or substitutions may be made in the manner of constructing the shoe. Where it is desirable to make a shoe without any extension of its bottom member the use of the presser foot is dispensed with and the shoe is presented to the machine with sufiicient pressure against the seam gage 39 to insure the proper results. In other respects the action of the take-up 21 in tightening the threads and setting each stitch in the work aids in retaining the shoe in proper operative relationship to the stitch-forming devices and acts to apply a supplemental tensioning force to the upper, causing it to conform more accurately with the last than afforded by ordinary flat-lasting operations.

Where a strip 76 is used to fill up the bulge in the rib 30 and especially Where a thick welt is used it may be desirable to apply a filler 80 to the shoe before the outsole is attached.

The nature and scope of the invention having been indicated and a particular embodiment having 'been described, what is claimed is:

1. A machine for forming an upper tensioning inseam along the break line in a flat lasted ripper of a shoe, said machine having stitch forming and Work feeding devices including a curved work penetrating instrument, and a Work support of substantial length along the line of work feed and of a width transversely to the line of feed at least half that of the tread surface of the shoe at its narrowest point, said work support having a Work engaging surface acting to support the shoe in opposition to the thrust of the work penetrating instrument, in combination with a gage disposed at an angle to the work supporting surface of the work support for pressing against the last supported side of the upper in line with the path of the penetrating instrument in an area spaced from the crease line leaving an area of the upper within the path of the penetrating instrument free to produce a bulging rib in the upper between the lines of the seam appearing along the side of the upper and along the tread surface of the shoe.

2. A machine for forming an upper tensioning inseam along the break line in a flat lasted upper of a shoe close to a bottom member beneath the upper, said machine having stitch forming and work feeding devices including a curved hook needle, and a work support of substantial length along the line of work feed and of a width transversely to the line of feed at least half that of the tread surface of the shoe at its narrowest point, said Work support having a work engaging surface acting to support the shoe in opposition to the thrust of the needle, in combination with a gage disposed at an angle to the work supporting surface of the work support for pressing against the last supported side of the upper in line with the path of the needle while leaving uncompressed an area of the upper within the needle path to produce a bulging rib in the upper between the lines of the seam on the upper and on said bottom member, and a presser foot acting inside the path of the needle to clamp an extension of the bottom member against the work support.

3. A machine for forming an upper tensioning inseam along the break line in a flat lasted shoe, as in claim 2, in which the bottom member is a flat welt and a guide is provided for directing the welt into the seam beneath the break line.

4. A machine for forming an upper tensioning inseam along the breakliue in a flat lasted upper of a shoe, as in claim 2, in which there is provided means for raising or lowering the work support during insertion of the seam to change the width of the bulging rib between the lines of the seam. on the upper and on the bottom memher.

5. A lock stitch machine for forming an upper tensioning seam along the break line in a flat lasted upper of a shoe, said machine having a main frame, stitch forming and work feeding devices including a curved hook needle, a shuttle for interlocking loops of needle thread With a locking thread, a raceway for the shuttle secured to the machine frame, and a work support of substantial length along the line of work feed and of a width transversely to the line of feed at least half that of the tread surface on the shoe at its narrowest point, said work support having a work engaging surface acting to support the shoe in opposition to the thrust of the needle, in combination with a gage disposed at an angle to the Work supporting surface of the work support for pressing the last supported side of the upper in line with the path of the needle while leaving an area of the upper within the needle path uncompressed to produce a bulging rib 0n the upper between the line of the seam on the upper and the tread surface of the shoe, a plate secured to the machine frame beneath the shuttle raceway and formed with a guideway extending tangentially 7 '8 to the arc of needle curvature, and clamping means for 2,420,643 5/ 1947 Ashworth 112-38 adjustably securing the gage in the guideway to enable 2,425,445 8/1947 Stritter 12-142 the width of the rib to be changed. 2,621,426 12/1952 Palmiere 36-19 2,780,188 2/1957 Schaefer et a1. 112-38 Ref r n s Cited 5 3,025,544 3/1962 Fake et a1. 12-142 UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,064,599 11/1962 Fake et a1. 112-6-2 1,169,909 2/1916 AShWOI'th 112-38 2 201 0 0 5 1940 Terzian 112 62 PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner. 2,380,577 7/1945 Calderazzo 36-19 2 393 475 4 194 Stritter 112 50 10 DAVID WILIJAMOWSKY, Examiner- 

1. A MACHINE FOR FORMING AN UPPER TENSIONING INSEAM ALONG THE BREAK LINE IN A FLAT LASTED UPPER OF A SHOE, SAID MACHINE HAVING STITCH FORMING AND WORK FEEDING DEVICES INCLUDING A CURVED WORK PENETRATING INSTRUMENT, AND A WORK SUPPORT OF SUBSTANTIAL LENGTH ALONG THE LINE OF WORK FEED AND OF A WIDTH TRANSVERSELY TO THE LINE OF FEED AT LEAST HALF THAT OF THE TREAD SURFACE OF THE SHOE AT ITS NARROWEST POINT, SAID WORK SUPPORT HAVING A WORK ENGAGING SURFACE ACTING SUPPORT THE SHOE IN OPPOSITION TO THE THRUST OF THE WORK PENETRATING INSTRUMENT, IN COMBINATION WITH A GAGE DISPOSED AT AN ANGLE TO THE WORK SUPPORTING SURFACE OF THE WORK SUPPORT FOR PRESSING AGAINST THE LAST SUPPORT SIDE OF THE UPPER IN LINE WITH THE PATH OF THE PENETRATING INSTRUMENT IN AN AREA SPACED FROM THE CREASE LINE LEAVING AND AREA OF THE UPPER WITHIN THE PATH OF THE PENETRATING INSTRUMENT FREE TO PRODUCE A BULGING RIB IN THE UPPER BETWEEN THE LINES OF THE SEAM APPEARING ALONG THE SIDE OF THE UPPER AND ALONG THE TREAD SURFACE OF THE SHOE. 